And she didn’t pick an easy sport to do it in, winning the women’s division at the Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championship in Quebec City on the weekend.

Desforges skated to victory almost untouched in Saturday night’s final in front of over 100,000 spectators.

“Coming down the last jump, I thought she was right behind me,” said the high-energy Desforges, describing her thoughts as she crossed the finish line. “I didn’t know I was that far ahead. I was just focussed on staying on my feet.”

Desforges was at the event last year and finished fifth overall. She says that experience was crucial to topping the podium this time around, especially since mild weather caused some practice sessions to be cancelled.

“Last year I noticed that I needed to skate more, that you actually have to push and not just cruise down the track. And then the course this year was quicker, there was less technique and you needed more speed.”

The Fournier native has earned the nickname Fearless Fannie, but she admits she was “a little nervous,” going into the final race, knowing who she was stacking up against. She beat out last year’s winner, Kyhala Salla of Finland, and fellow Canuck and experienced racer, Marquise Brisebois.

Now Desforges is the one to beat, and she plans to continue to race. Currently, the Quebec City event is the only event on the four-city schedule which has a women’s competition. If that were to change, Desforges is eager to compete at the international events as well.